Chapter 61: Midterm Evaluation (3)
Ronan turned Lamancha backwards and thrust his sword into the back of Baldie No. 2. As his figure disappeared, his body finally regained its freedom.
“Crazy bastards.”
Ronan muttered curses. The final moments of Baldy No. 2 and 3 were heroic. No matter how secure things were, they were not ordinary in courage.
The ground was rapidly receding. The wind roared with enough force to shatter eardrums. Ronan calmly surveyed his surroundings. The cliff face was so smooth that there was nothing to hold onto.
‘I guess I’ll have to trust Doron.’
Waves were crashing above his head. The pure white stone wall was shooting up right in front of Ronan’s eyes.
Twisting his body this way and that, Ronan managed to position himself upright as he fell. With both hands gripping the hilt in reverse, Ronan swung Lamancha downward with all his might.
Clang!
The blade, which had been looking down below, got stuck in the cliff.
“Ugh!”
The shock that ran through his entire body made Ronan grit his teeth.
Kaga-gak!
Lamancha split the cliff vertically as it descended. The speed gradually slowed, and in a matter of seconds, the fall came to a halt.
“Ugh… Ugh… darn it…”
The exhaustion that one would feel after decapitating about a hundred stone giants in a row was overwhelming. When he raised his head, he saw a cleanly cut gash about 5 meters wide.
‘I can’t afford to do that twice…’
White dust was rising from the wounds on the cliff. The ground was no longer clearly visible. Just then, the same explosion sound from earlier echoed from above.
-Kwaang!
“…Are they still fighting?”
Ronan’s eyes widened. Chunks of debris that once made up the island rained down on him. Dodging the falling rocks, he quickly began to crawl up the cliff as fast as possible.
Thud!
The explosive sound reverberated again.
****
“Amazing, Adeshan. How many times has this happened already?”
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Ayun raised the hammer embedded in the ground. A deep, wide pit had been dug beneath the head of the hammer, carved with a wolf’s face.
After catching her breath, Adeshan spoke.
“Hey… Ayun, stop fooling around. Don’t… mock me anymore.”
“It’s not a joke. I genuinely admire you. How is this even possible?” Ayun shook his head.
His five-foot leap and meteor-like fall was a technique that even the most honors student would have trouble dodging. However, Adeshan had already evaded it five times. It seemed as if she could perfectly anticipate Ayun’s landing point. It was an achievement that was hard to believe for someone still at the level of a sword user.
“Seriously, how can you just keep using the same technique? Do it right, like you do with everyone else.”
“Others usually get knocked out with just one move of this technique… Adeshan, why don’t you appreciate my consideration?”
“Consideration?”
“Yeah. I’m just trying to take you out once and for all, unscathed. Why are you putting up a pointless fight? Look at you.”
Ayun said with a sense of regret. Indeed, regardless of whether she evaded or not, Adeshan’s body was in a pitiable state. Although she had avoided the descent, she couldn’t stop the sharp fragments in time.
The flying debris had inflicted numerous cuts, big and small, all over her body. Adeshan said,
“—Never mind.”
“Huh?”
Blood dripping from her forehead obscured her vision. With each movement, a burning pain spread through her body as the wounds reopened. Adeshan wiped her face with her sleeve and adjusted her posture.
“If you really care about me, then don’t watch anymore.”
“Well, you’ve always been stubborn even before your talent developed. It’s truly sad to have no talent.”
Ayun crouched down again. Adeshan watched his movements with wide eyes. Hundreds of predictive trajectories appeared before her eyes.
‘His right foot moved first. The left bicep bulged. It’s the same type of downward strike as the third one.’
Ayun seemed intent on using only the downward strike until the end. Eventually, his body shot up. A shadow cast over Adeshan’s head.
‘Please let me know if there’s anything else I can assist you with!’
The massive hammer was descending, tearing through the wind. Adeshan hadn’t taken her eyes off Ayun until that moment.
Before long, hundreds of paths converged into one. Just before the hammer touched her forehead, Adeshan rolled her body to the left.
Kwa-aang!!
With a deafening noise, dirt and dust exploded.
“Heh, I missed again…”
It narrowly missed. Just as Ayun was about to raise the hammer again, a shadow rushed towards him.
“Would you like to counter-attack?”
Ayun smirked and swung the hammer horizontally.
Whoosh!
The war hammer traced an arc, and dirt and dust flew. Ayun’s eyes widened.
“Huh?”
Where the dirt and dust had cleared, a deformed and mangled armor appeared.
Thud!
The armor that had taken a direct hit from the hammer bounced far away.
And Adeshan?
A chilling shiver ran down Ayun’s spine. It was the moment when she urgently turned her head. A diagonal thrust from Adeshan struck Ayun’s neck with precise accuracy.
Kwaang!
The sound of metal reverberated. Adeshan, who had revealed herself from behind, muttered quietly.
“…Damn.”
“That was spine-chilling, Adeshan. Seriously.”
Adeshan’s hand holding the hilt trembled. No matter how much force she applied, the blade wouldn’t pierce his skin. Ayun’s skin where it met the blade had turned as hard as metal. Ayun muttered with a frustrated tone, as if his breath was stuck in her throat.
“I never thought I’d need to activate aura.”
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A cold sweat trickled down Ayun’s neck. Adeshan’s sword strike had come from an impeccable angle. If she had already reached the Sword Expert level, he would have been knocked out instantly. Ayun sighed with relief and swung the hammer.
“Ugh!”
Thud!
The blow to the hilt knocked her backward. Ayun’s mischievous expression vanished. Without leaping into the air, he directly brought down the hammer.
Adeshan urgently raised her head. The wolf’s face made of black iron was right in front of her.
“…There’s no way to avoid it.”
Suddenly, the image of Ronan, saving her and falling down the cliff, flashed in her mind. She had tried her best to seek revenge, but in the end, she had failed. It was the moment she tightly closed her eyes.
Kaa-aang!
A metallic sound, as if eardrums were being torn, resonated in her ears.
“—Did you climb that cliff?”
Astonished, Ayun’s voice followed. Adeshan opened her eyes. A familiar figure stood in front of her.
“…Ronan?”
“You’re still alive, Thank you for the hard work.”
“W-Weren’t you eliminated? What happened?!”
“I just crawled up, no big deal, but my sword had a hard time.”
Lamancha, clenched in Ronan’s hand, had several nicks and dings. The rough journey up the cliff had taken its toll on the sword.
Ronan slightly cut his forearm and let the blood stain the sword. The sword, once again sharpened as if new skin was growing, began to radiate energy. Ayun, who was observing his hammer, spoke with a puzzled tone.
“What… What is this sword made of?”
The wolf’s jaw fragment in the hammerhead had been cleanly sliced. A sword made of specially processed black iron that could cut through it like butter—such a weapon was unheard of. Adeshan, who had regained her senses, spoke urgently.
“Ronan, be careful. Ayun’s specialty is leaping into the air and delivering a downward strike. It’s easier to counterattack by targeting his right side where his weight is concentrated. If you watch his elbow angle closely, you can easily avoid it. Don’t rush…”
“Thank you. But this time, I’m fine.”
“Huh?”
Ronan turned his head slightly to look at Adeshan. It was no exaggeration to say that every inch of her that wasn’t covered by armor was wounded. Blood dripped from her arms, stomach, forehead, shoulders, thighs, and shins.
His grip on the hilt tightened. Ronan turned his gaze back to Ayun. With a tone that sounded almost mocking, he said.
“How dare you—.”
Sensing a sense of unease, Ayun adjusted his posture. He felt that handling it carelessly wouldn’t be a good idea. Just as he was about to activate aura again, Ronan’s figure disappeared from his sight.
“Huh?”
‘She doesn’t have any openings.’
Ayun’s eyes widened. Ronan, who had disappeared for a moment, reappeared right beside him. It was the moment when he put effort into swinging the hammer.
“Quaaaaagh!”
His clothes exploded, and a fountain of blood burst from his entire body.
“Kraaaah!”
The hammer slipped from Ayun’s hand. Large and small wounds were engraved all over his body. The wounds were precisely measured to avoid death or severe injury.
Even Aura, which hardened the skin, didn’t work. Adeshan covered her mouth in astonishment.
“W-What is this…!”
She couldn’t even see the intermediate process until the clothes exploded. Ayun was on the verge of losing consciousness and collapsing. Ronan pressed his bare forehead against his face and delivered a knee kick to his descending face.
Crack!
With the sound of a broken nose, white teeth flew into the air.
“Kuuh!”
It was a shame he didn’t have any hair to grab onto, being bald. Ronan had no choice but to straddle Ayun’s chest. He was about to say something as he struggled for breath.
Quash!
Ronan’s fist smashed into the middle of his face.
“Puhuk!”
“Take a few hits before you die. It won’t be a bad experience.”
One-sided violence continued. With each punch that struck his face, blood and teeth scattered. It didn’t take long before Ayun’s figure vanished. Ronan wiped the blood from his fist into his pants and muttered under his breath.
“Damn bald bastard.”
Finally, his anger seemed to ease a bit. The sight of Philleon’s students in confusion caught his eye. The top student of the third year, now covered in blood, provided quite the spectacle.
After a while, Ronan got up and approached Adeshan. She was seated on the ground like someone who had seen a ghost, blinking her eyes repeatedly.
“Are you okay?”
“Uh, yeah…”
“Wait. I’ll heal it now.”
Ronan retrieved a potion bottle from his pouch. He began applying the potion meticulously to each of Adeshan’s wounds.
As the blue liquid touched the wounds, they rapidly started to heal. It was the moment when Ronan was about to bring his hand to the wound on her cheek.
“Um, can I take care of the rest? I’m really grateful, but…”
“Stay still.”
“Uh, yeah…”
Ronan held the tip of her chin and finished applying the potion. Their faces were so close that their breaths mingled. Adeshan kept her gaze fixed on the ground until the treatment was completed. Suddenly, Ronan spoke.
“By the way, how did you do that?”
“Huh? What…?”
“Avoiding the attacks from that hothead. Even if you did it carelessly, it wouldn’t have been easy for a senior to dodge. You even managed to counterattack earlier.”
“Ah… it’s not a big deal. I just predicted the trajectory based on his habits and movements. you can figure out most of that stuff after you see it a few times.”
“Normally, people don’t call that ‘not a big deal’.”
Ronan let out a wry laugh. It was almost like an incredible insight. It seemed he could understand the reason why she was able to withstand someone with a significantly higher skill level for almost five minutes. After finishing applying the potion, Ronan removed his hand from Adeshan’s chin.
“There, all done.”
“Uh, yeah… thanks.”
Adeshan grabbed Ronan’s hand and got up. The wounds and pain that had covered her entire body had completely disappeared. With a concerned tone, she asked a question.
“Um… that potion you used just now, it’s really expensive, isn’t it…?”
“Yeah.”
“Can you really use something that valuable on me? I’m sure they’ll cure me when I get back to Philleon anyway.”
“Then should I use it on myself even when I’m not hurt? Why does everyone say the same thing as that dwarf? And here, put this on.”
Unexpectedly, Ronan took off his outer uniform and handed it to her. Adeshan was taken aback and waved her hands.
“Huh? Oh, no…It’s really fine…. It’s enough.”
“The cold is intense. Just put it on your shoulders or something.”
Only now did Adeshan realize her condition. Her armor-clad areas were soaked with blood and sweat. Her white bare skin was exposed through the cracks in her torn clothes.
She quietly draped the outer garment over her shoulders. Ronan, who seemed satisfied with this spoke up,
“Well then, let’s go.”
“Huh? Aren’t we going to fight…?”
“We can do that later. Let’s go to a place we haven’t been before.”
Ronan turned his back. Adeshan, who had been hesitating, stuck close to his side. The two of them moved their steps inward onto the island. Next to the forest, a hilly area covered in short grass stretched out. Amidst their walk, the sound of screams and clashing metal occasionally reached them on the wind.
“Seems like they’re still in the middle of a big fight.”
“Yeah, there are over a hundred people, so it’ll probably take a while.”
“Senior, who do you think will win?”
“Huh? Um… maybe you, or Shullifen, if I had to guess.”
“Well, that won’t do. Since I’ll be the winner anyway, I should be telling them to go wash their necks and prepare for my attack. What’s up with those little punks?”
At that moment, two male students dashed out from behind a hill. Armed with bows and spears, they yelled fiercely as they charged toward Ronan and Adeshan.
“Hyaaah!”
“We’re in the middle of a conversation!”
Their speed was unusual. Ronan swung his sword, somewhat annoyed.
Swish!
Both of their figures disappeared simultaneously. Adeshan gasped and murmured as she raised her head.
“—You’re amazing, and I can see why Professor said you’re one of the lucky few in the world.”
“So am I.”
Ronan, as if taking something out of their pocket, revealed that the two of them were among the top students in the third year. They continued walking, chatting about various things.
As the hill area ended, they entered a dense forest once again. Unlike the coastal forest, this one was much more dangerous and vast. The surroundings became quiet. Suddenly, Ronan, who had been strolling between the trees, stopped in his tracks.
“Adeshan.”
“Yeah?”
“I want to hear the stories I didn’t hear back then. Is it possible?”
“Back then…?”
“On the day we first met, in the infirmary. There was a conversation about why you wanted to become a Grand General.”
His tone was serious. Adeshan’s face tightened as she recalled the memory. Awkwardly, she scratched the back of her head and chuckled.
“Haha, why do you suddenly want to know about that…?”
“It’s something very important.”
“It’s not a very interesting story, though…”
“I want to hear it.”
Ronan showed no intention of backing down. Adeshan hesitated, looking at his eyes for a moment before bowing her head deeply. Her lips parted with a slight pause.
“…There was a war.”
